The Clemson Tigers and Ohio State Buckeyes ranked out as two of the best teams in the country last season. Unfortunately, neither was good enough to stop the runaway train that proved to be the national champion LSU Tigers. Dabo Swinney’s kids fought back valiantly to defeat the Buckeyes in the semifinal round, but then went on to get waxed by Coach O’s Tigers in the title game. As great a team Clemson possessed when it won it all a few years back, there were only three players drafted in the first round from that team. Still, it would’ve gotten the best of Ohio State who only saw two of its players taken in the first 32 picks. The Buckeyes are currently installed the favorites in the NFL Draft prop between Clemson and OSU this time around with most mocks only expecting Isaiah Simmons to be a lock for the first round. On the flipside, many are predicting 2-4 Buckeyes to be taken off the board on Thursday, April 23 when the gala event kicks off. But will it truly play out that way? Let’s break it all down!
2020 NFL Draft Odds at BookMaker.eu – More 1st Round Picks
Clemson Players +1/2 -186
Ohio State Players -1/2 +148
The consensus of mock drafts is that Chase Young is a stone cold lock to be selected No. 2 in NFL Draft betting by a Washington Redskins franchise sorely in need of a superstar injection along its defensive front. While Montez Sweat was more than serviceable in his rookie season with 50 tackles and 7 sacks, Washington still ranked out with the No. 27 ranked total defense that was laughable at defending the run and had all sorts of issues preventing dual-threat QBs from embarrassing them. With that, Young looks to be the perfect candidate to give the Buckeyes the lead over Clemson right out of the chute after racking up 46 tackles with 21 going for a loss to go along with an impressive 16.5 sacks. Hopefully Washington doesn’t find a way to not take advantage of having this stud fall into their lap!
The next Buckeye likely to separate himself from the player pool will be Jeff Okudah. The big-bodied senior gave opposing B1G pass catchers major problems throughout his three-year stay in Columbus, and his size and speed should allow for him to adapt to the NFL level with relative ease. A fantastic landing spot could prove to be Detroit where the Lions need to replace the services of Darius Slay whom they shipped to the City of Brotherly Love in the offseason. Detroit is a popular choice by many mock drafters to trade down in this draft. Even so, they should be able to get their man wherever they wind up. Regardless, Okudah being snagged within the first 10 picks would find Ohio State owning a 2-0 lead in their respective prop battle with Clemson.
The Fighting Swinney’s will finally hit the board when the times come for Isaiah Simmons to find his new home. If he’s still on the board for the Arizona Cardinals to select at No. 8, they better sprint to the virtual podium and get their selection in! Simmons could do wonders for a Redbirds defense that needs help in just about every facet. He thrived mainly in the linebacker role for the Tigers’ defense the last three seasons, but also excelled at safety or anywhere else Brent Venables plugged him into. With 238 tackles and 11 sacks to his credit as a three-year player, he‘d look great in Cardinals red and immediately pay dividends for a defense that should have some comfortable margins to play with in year two of Kyler Murray running the show in the desert.
Other possibilities going from Clemson later in the first round include A.J. Terrell and possibly Tee Higgins, but both would be considered major reaches by mock drafters. As for Ohio State, players like Damon Arnette and J.K. Dobbins are still in the mix as well. Regardless, the final results of this prop bet battle are going to be extremely close. As it is, Young and Okudah are first round locks for the Buckeyes. Simmons is the only lock for Clemson in my opinion. However, anything can happen and I’m going to trust the pedigree coming out of Clemson under Swinney’s watch to buy a piece of the Tigers at a nice plus-money return and expect for them to at the very least tie the Buckeyes for more first round picks and cover the half-point spread in 2020 NFL Draft betting.
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